


First There Must Be Truth

by markwatnae



Series: Lucida [6]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Prequel Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Apologies, Family Feels, Gen, Making Up, Reconciliation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-01
Updated: 2020-09-01
Packaged: 2021-03-07 02:48:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,593
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26239597
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/markwatnae/pseuds/markwatnae
Summary: Edie wants to know Dooku as a man, not as a Sith Lord to be battled, and she struggles with what he tells her.
Relationships: Dooku & Original Female Character(s), Obi-Wan Kenobi & Original Female Character(s), Qui-Gon Jinn & Obi-Wan Kenobi, Qui-Gon Jinn & Original Female Character(s)
Series: Lucida [6]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/758790
Comments: 2
Kudos: 25





	First There Must Be Truth

**Author's Note:**

> “If there is to be reconciliation, first there must be truth.”  
> ― Timothy B. Tyson

“Why did you surrender?”

Dooku looks up as Edie tosses her meditation cushion onto the tiled floor outside his cell. She sits down on it, crossing her legs, and settles in for a long conversation. He looks surprised and that gives her a sliver of satisfaction.

He stays quiet. Edie waits patiently.

“Shortly before the battle of Coruscant, Sidious came to me complaining of Skywalker. I realized that he was planning on replacing me.”

“You didn’t surrender because you were going to lose your place at his side,” Edie says flatly.

“No, I didn’t,” Dooku agrees. “Sidious was so angry that he nearly laid it all out for me. He’d been convincing Skywalker of his ‘true potential’ and laying doubt in his mind about the Jedi.”

Edie closes her fist in her lap. Her mind-healer, Sena, has been supportive of her anger over Sidious’s control of Anakin. With Anakin’s blessing, Edie told Sena about his time as a slave, and then she understood that Edie was furious that Sidious had attempted to make him a slave once more. Her treatment is still ongoing.

She doesn’t prompt him, waiting for him to continue.

Dooku strokes his beard and looks up at Edie. “Sidious was upset that someone had convinced Skywalker to rekindle his friendship with Kenobi and trust in the Jedi once again.”

Edie stares at him.

“I asked him who could undo all of this work,” Dooku says. “That was when he told me Kenobi had chosen another padawan. I wasn’t shocked. Kenobi always seemed the type to love teaching. Sidious relayed all the information Skywalker had given him about you. It wasn’t much because Skywalker was refusing his requests for meetings more and more frequently, citing prior engagements with Kenobi, Tano, and you.”

“Why did that change anything? You had already sworn your allegiance to the Sith.”

Dooku sighs quietly, averting his gaze. He wrings his hands.

“I remembered when Qui-Gon brought you to the Temple. He talked for hours about the knowledge the Force had given him about your place in the Jedi. He was thrilled to be able to watch you grow. I never cared for Skywalker. He was powerful and arrogant. I blamed him for Qui-Gon’s death. I tried to lay the seeds for Kenobi but he was too dedicated to the Republic and the Order. I still cared for him; he was Qui-Gon’s greatest achievement. But I couldn’t, in good conscience, condemn you to death. You are the last remaining connection to Qui-Gon. I had already betrayed him by joining the Sith. He wouldn’t have cared if I’d left the Order but allowing Jedi to die and killing them myself would have been too much.”

Edie’s eyes narrow. “You decided to save the Jedi because you felt guilty for being complicit in my death. Am I truly the only one worth saving?”

“I did not say my reasons were benevolent,” he replies cooly.

“Why didn’t you just kidnap me and kill the rest of the Jedi?” She demands.

“What I gleaned from Sidious’s complaints about Skywalker lead me to believe that you and Kenobi were more bonded than the usual master and padawan. Even more so than he and Qui-Gon had been. Once I knew Sidious was grooming Skywalker to replace me, I decided that there was no reason to allow the Jedi to die. If I was going to save two of you, I might as well save the rest. The Jedi have stagnated but I believe they can change.”

Edie’s chest feels tight. She doesn’t understand why.

She stands suddenly, snatches up her pillow, and runs out the door. She doesn’t slow until she’s in a lift and she can sink into a crouch, holding her head in her hands.

  
  


Edie relays their discussion to Master Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon, poorly disguising her agitation.

“Why is this my responsibility?” She demands.

Her master comes to stand in front of her, cradling her face in his hands. His blue eyes are sad.

“It’s not,” he says. “You’re not responsible. You’re only a child.”

“He came back for me,” she says, fierce and angry. She buries her face in her master’s chest. “I don’t know what to do.”

Obi-Wan strokes her back. “You don’t have to do anything, my dear. It’s not your job to bring him back to the Light. He must do the work on his own.”

“If Dooku truly wants to rejoin the Order,” Master Qui-Gon says softly, “then he knows what he must do. You can only decide if you are willing to support him and you are under no obligation to do so. You’ve only begun your training; there’s no way you can understand what he is grappling with.”

“I want to know him,” she says. “I don’t want him to betray us again.”

A big hand settles at the base of her skull, thumb rubbing against her cheek.

“You can distance yourself from him but still remain supportive,” Master Qui-Gon says.

His voice is quiet and close now. She relaxes some.

“The moment you feel unsafe or frightened, you can pull back. He’s not obligated to your support. That is a gift he must earn. Doing so will not make you a bad person. You must care for yourself before you can care for others.”

“Look up for me, darling,” Obi-Wan says, warm hands pressing gently under her jaw.

Edie does as she’s asked, angry tears threatening to blur her vision. Her master smoothes her hair and places a kiss on her forehead. Their bond opens wide and, knowing her master is there to catch her, those tears finally fall. She curls into his arms once again and he holds her close.

“I’ve got you, padawan, I’m here,” he murmurs.

Master Qui-Gon rests a hand on her back.

She feels better, lighter, less burdened once she has run out of tears to shed into her master’s tunics. He keeps their bond open, letting her feel his love and support as she sits up, still sniffling.

“I’m sorry.”

Master Obi-Wan dries her left cheek with the sleeve of his tunic. “You’ve nothing to apologize for.”

She looks over at Master Qui-Gon guiltily who looks back at her with wide, innocent eyes.

“I have nothing to say that Obi-Wan hasn’t already said,” he replies, leaning in to kiss her on the head. “A few tears never hurt anyone.”

“Master, you know what she means,” Obi-Wan says.

“Alright,” Master Qui-Gon says. “I’ve come to understand that crying is how you handle these kinds of stress and it is not as terrible a coping mechanism as I was lead to believe in my training. You’ve always overcome the obstacles set before you and I have no doubt you will do the same with this one.”

She smiles but it doesn’t reach her eyes.

“Thank you,” she says.

He kisses her again on the cheek. “You’re welcome, little one. I would hate for you to fear me instead of see me as someone here to support you. You’re more important than some flimsy explanations from forty years ago.”

Edie laughs then and Qui-Gon grins at her.

“That’s better.”

  
  


“I apologize for upsetting you,” Dooku says.

Edie stands in front of his cell, holding her meditation cushion.

“I felt responsible for your return to the Order,” she replies. “I also felt immense guilt knowing that you were fine killing and allowing the deaths of thousands of Jedi up until you learned of my existence. I couldn’t understand what made me worth saving that all the others did not have.”

Dooku smiles without humor. “Once again, my desires were entirely selfish. The other Jedi were not important to me and were not connected to me the way you are.”

She grimaces and takes a step back, considering leaving.

“I apologize,” he says, soft and genuine. “I know I am speaking against everything you’ve been taught. All life is precious and should be protected. I admit that I turned my back on that ideal and did so without a second thought. It will haunt me for the rest of my days but you are not the one who should carry that burden. I apologize for putting you in that position. You do not deserve that.”

“I want to know you,” Edie says softly and Dooku looks up at her with surprise.

“I want to know you,” she repeats. “But I do not want to feel the sting of your betrayal. I will support you if you decide to rejoin the Order but understand that I will revoke that support the moment you hurt me. If you wish for me to stand at your side as you make this effort, you will have to earn my trust. If you don’t want it, tell me now.”

Dooku sits up straight but his shoulders remain relaxed. “I would be honored if you would offer your encouragement to me as I rejoin the Order but understand that you are within your rights to protect yourself should I pose a threat.”

Edie nods and settles on her cushion. “Thank you, grandmaster.”

A pause passes between them.

“My proper title would be great-grandmaster.” His tone is light, teasing.

“Yes, but if I called everyone by their proper titles I would be adding ‘great’s for hours. It’s far more difficult to call Master Yoda ‘great-great-grandmaster.’ There are too many syllables. The meaning is the same. I care about and respect you as an elder in my lineage. Isn’t that what matters?” Edie replies.

Dooku smiles. “I suppose so.”


End file.
